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The Sudrian Chronicles
'The Sudrian Chronicles '''is an upcoming Japanese animated series, based on the ''Railway Series created by the Reverend Wilbert Awdry, and adapted and written by Dennis Muldrew. The series is a darker and more mature take on the original series, and is aimed at both teenagers and adults rather than children. The series features real-life events never covered in the original books such as World War II, the Great Depression, and even the "Beeching Act". Development Shortly after the announcement of the original 1984 series receiving a major, modern upgrade to focus on a more international setting for the series, which eventually became Thomas & Friends: Big World! Big Adventures!, Sactown Studios announced via their Twitter that they were working on a more family-friendly series with a general audience in mind. On November 13th, 2017, the project was announced as the Sudrian Chronicles. Dennis Muldrew, the series creator, director, producer, and head writer, mentioned that he was a big fan of the original series growing up, and that he wanted to provide an alternative series for the fans to enjoy, while also keeping the original vision that the Awdry family wanted for the series. Muldrew mentioned through the tweet that the series would re-imagine the engines in a more realistic setting, and would incorporate many of the characters from the original books and television series. He also mentioned that many new characters would appear in the series. On December 13th, 2017, Britt Allcroft, Christopher Awdry, Veronica Chambers were announced as producers for the series. Muldrew stated that he asked Britt Allcroft to return to the series in order to have a bit of the television series influence in the series. He also mentioned that Christopher Awdry and Veronica Chambers were asked to become producers in order to make sure that their father's legacy would be adapted well for the series. On December 14th, 2017, Isle of Mann fireman and taxi driver John Bellis was confirmed to be the voice for Thomas. In addition, Keith Scott was confirmed to be the voice of Diesel 10 in the series. Both actors were previously cut from the original cut of the 2000 film adaption of Thomas & The Magic Railroad. Changes from Thomas & Friends *The series takes on a more Japanese-anime look, complete with the engines receiving more detailed, and accurate looks to their real-life counterparts, based on the illustrations by Gunvor and Peter Edwards for the Railway Series. The engines also receive eye colors for the very first time. *Lily Stone, Patch, Burnett Stone, and the people of Shining Time are residents of Sodor in the series. *Misty Island is replaced by the Cronk Forest Timber Mill Company, which unlike Misty Island, is located on Sodor. Bash, Dash, Fredidnand, and Lexi are engines buil specifically for the company for work there, alongside two new female characters Stacy, and Jasmine. *Billy is a deceased tank engine for the now defunct Wellsworth and Suddery Railway who was killed in the winter of 1912 while speeding with a passenger train that kills him and the passengers. He is replaced with Charlie in the spring of 1913, who is also a former tank engine for the Wellsworth and Suddery Railway, who is now working as a member of the North Western Railway. *Tidmouth is depicted as the largest station and city on Sodor, and is given its proper Railway Series depiction. It also has the largest harbor on Sodor. *Tidmouth Sheds is able to accommodate 20 engines, and the turntable is located inside of the sheds. The series adds 10 more births to accommodate the engines, but the original design is based off of Tidmouth Shed's depiction in The Railway Series. *The engines origins of how they arrived on Sodor have been changed, with characters such as Charlie being a former member of the Wellworth and Suddery Railway. *Edward is made the main narrator for the series, and often tells the stories. Other engines, and even the controllers of Sodor have been confirmed as potential narrators for the episodes. *The series' episodes are a mix of Railway Series retelling and adaptations, TV series adaptations, and original content. *Although many of the original voice actors return to reprise their roles for the series, some characters such as Thomas, and Diesel 10 gain new voice actors. *The series is darker, and more mature than the original series, not being Characters The North Western Railway Company Locomotives The North Western Railway is the main Standard Gauge rail network on the Island of Sodor. It is affectionately known as the Hatt Family's Railway by both engines and residents alike. The railway becomes known as Sodor Rail in Season 7. The Culdee Fell Moutain Railway Humans of Sodor The Hatt Family] The Hatt Family have been in charge of the North Western Railway since the railway's formation in Other Humans Episodes Season 1 Season 1 is a mixture of Railway Series adaptations, Television Series adaptations, Magazine/Annual adaptations and original stories created especially for the series. Each episode is treated as a "book" and lasts for 30 minutes each. The first season takes place during both the 1920's, and the 1930's, with real life events such as The Great War, The Great Depression, and other events are mentioned very heavily, with some episodes even taking place within said times. The season begins shortly after both the creation, and enforcement of the Railway Act of 1921, which creates the North Western Railway on Sodor in 1923. The season finale takes place in 1939, around the same time that both England and France declare war on Germany, leading to Season 2 taking place during WWII. Feature Film The series was confirmed to be adapted into a feature film titled Thomas & The Fall: A Sudrian Chronicles Film on December 26th, 2017. The film is confirmed Voice Cast Trivia